Leaving Saria
by Hysteric Polaris
Summary: [ Z5, Forest Temple ] Upon completing the Forest Temple, Link realizes that he's losing his best friend. R


Leaving Saria  
-GamerGirl

Disclaimer: I don't own The Legend of Zelda or any of its nouns, they belong to their respective owners.

Author's Note: Turn back now if you hate flashbacks or plotless stories. This is mainly a collection of contemplative thoughts. For those of you still here, enjoy!

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"Hyah!!" I grunted as I sliced through your phantom counterpart once more. He dissipated and you telepathically explain that fighting you will be much tougher and that you shall banish your phantom to the rift between dimensions. As your voice recedes from my mind, I am suddenly levitated into the air within a blue shaft of light. As I ascend higher, I glance up to where I'm going. I'd rather see what's coming than what I'm leaving behind. This way I can be prepared; yet another new skill I've learned since I began...  
  
I descend into a room not so foreign to me and landed on a centric platform. Beneath me, streams of water cascade downward, trailing off my platform and into a bottomless dark abyss. All around me I see similar waterfalls falling from the distant, invisible ceiling, if there even is one, and pouring into the equally boundless floor. Besides the water and the platform on which I stand, I see darkness. Nothing more. Also on my platform lie six multi-colored symbols, forming a circle around me. While glancing at the green symbol, a familiar figure peeks out from it; an all too familiar figure.  
  
My mind reaches out desperately to find where I put all those words that could describe this moment. Maybe even describe my joy, but I turn up empty. My friend, Saria; my best friend who raised me since birth, played with me when no one else would when I was younger, and would treat me as a fellow Kokiri, not some lower being that was only meant as an emotional punching bag and for physical labor.  
  
I wonder if she's missed me. I've been worried sick about her since I left her, and my innocence, behind. I was of course courageous that day, but I was also saddened. I was only ten, the youngest of my entire tribe, and I had to leave. But I guess I know the reasons now... I'm responsible now.  
  
After I unsheathed the Master Sword, the sword of evil's bane, and released Ganondorf's dark and evil soul into the golden sacred land of the Triforce, I was sealed away.  
  
For seven years I lay dormant, ever waiting for the day when Fate would decide I was of age to save my people, to fulfill my destiny. But I knew none of this. All I knew was that I drew the sword, allowed him passage, fell asleep, and woke up soon after in this body; this man's body. It felt foreign swinging my blade, climbing up ridges, defending with my shield. Almost like I was in someone else's body, like I was wearing it as a shell or a disguise for the soul purpose of getting the Sages to allow me one more dawn.  
  
Upon awakening and noticing my significant change in appearance, my first thoughts were "What happened to Ganondorf?" and "Where are my friends? Are they all right?". But my thoughts on friends were mostly directed toward Saria. She was always there for me, but she can't be anymore... Ever since I started this fruitless adventure I've lost the time I usually spend with family, with her, to Fate. I can only speak to her through mystic melodies now...  
  
When I had been awakened and I had left my old resting place, I had returned to Hyrule only to discover it in shambles. The Town Market charred to a crisp and destroyed, Zora's Domain frozen over with the tribe still in its waters, and Death Mountain's volcanic soul awakened from its slumber. The largest surprise was the castle. The castle where I had met Zelda and started this whole adventure... It was gone, and a tall dark floating fortress had replaced it. It was floating over a deep lava pool with no visible path to the entrance. The other surprise was the forest. Despite all this destruction and bloodshed, my home had somehow been protected. I guess I have the rumors to thank for that. It has always been rumored that the children of the forest cannot leave for threat of death. And Ganondorf probably assumed that their isolation posed them as absolutely no threat. Thank Din.  
  
So I ventured there to seek out Saria and wind up finding everyone but her. No one's aged of course, as the Kokiri never grow old, so I asked around. They all said she went to her secret place, our secret place; one of our many childhood secrets. I immediately go to see her only to find monsters in her absence. What's happened to her? I fear the worst and enter the evil temple that has taken residence in our secret spot only to find Phantom Ganon. Now here I am.  
  
I was finally about to speak and ask how she fared, and to tell her how worried I've been, but she speaks first.  
  
I am told that she is a chosen one, like me, and cannot return to our world. I never got that kind of punishment for being chosen! Why her? She explains that destiny had chosen her to watch over the temple I had just overcome and that she was a Sage now.  
  
The Forest Sage.  
  
She had her responsibilities.  
  
I had mine.  
  
There was nothing I could do to change that.  
  
I merely accepted her gift, as a hero, as she offered it, as a Sage. We weren't friends anymore. We were merely pawns in Destiny's plot. I wonder if she felt this way. I wonder how she felt knowing that she'd have to take up the responsibilities of a Sage. Was she upset? Did she take it okay? Was she sad? If she was sad I would be more than happy to attempt to cheer her up; anything for my best friend. I shake off the thought. We're not friends anymore. But I wish we were. I miss the days when we were friends, with no cares in the world. Now the world is our cares, and our lives are our dedication to protect it.  
  
Just before it's time for me to depart, I open my mouth, finally ready to tell her, to ask her, to ponder no more. But I'm halted and enveloped in a bright light. I hear her voice echoing off the walls off my mind.  
  
"We'll always be friends, right?" she asks me. I'm in the void heading back to the tainted harmony that is now Hyrule. To the ruins of what used to be my home. This was it... I'll never see her again after this...  
  
But I nodded in agreement regardless of my knowledge. I guess she was feeling the same way the whole time, longing to remain together with me, as we were, the best of friends. Hear that Fate? Destiny? Are you listening? You may be able to break my spirit and my pride; you may even be able to deal me a hand I could never win with. But not even you can sever the ties of friendship.


End file.
